How To Set A Background For A Still Life Photo
Take y'all ever tried to do still life photography? Information technology's a wonderful style for photographers to practise and improve their skills.
If you're non sure what information technology is or how to get started, this guide tin be of great assistance.
Y'all'll find some keen even so life photography ideas, beautiful examples of still life photos for your inspiration, and 16 pro tips for you to endeavour on your next shoot.
Let's get started!
What is Nevertheless Life Photography?
Still life photography refers to pictures that feature an arrangement of inanimate objects. These tin be organic – like nutrient or flowers – or human-made.
However life photography tin be broken downwards into two major categories: 'created still life' and 'plant still life'. Which ane your photography falls into depends on whether you planned and organized the however life or non.
Information technology can be further sub-categorized according to the discipline (i.e. still life product photography) or technique (i.eastward. flat-lay still life photography).
8 Still Life Photography Ideas
Here are some still life photography ideas for you to practice at domicile:
- Nutrient Photography – This kind of still life photography features any nutrient: from raw produce to fully cooked meals. To photograph it as however life, recollect that you shouldn't include a person in the picture – neither cooking nor eating the nutrient.
- Product Photography – This is i of the categories of commercial photography. The principal characteristic is that you're showcasing a product with the intention of selling it. To do still life photography with products, yous can make a composition with them. Yous can find many examples in makeup brands – recollect of a photograph that includes a set of lipsticks of unlike shades, for example.
- Flower Photography – Flowers are 1 of the nearly archetype subjects in still life, and I'm not just referring to photography but paintings besides. You can arrange beautiful bouquets or arrange the petals in a creative limerick.
- Black and White Photography – Switching from color to greyscale is a good practice to improve your photography, and it can be very well suited to all the same life. Objects photographed in blackness and white get a different mood that you lot can use for your creative vision.
- Flat-lay Photography – The term 'flat-lay' refers to the angle of view rather than the subject. To shoot a perfect flat-lay, the sensor needs to be parallel to the surface where you have the bailiwick. This type of all the same life photography became very trendy on social networks such as Instagram. You can notice many examples and sometimes fifty-fifty contests using the hashtag #flatlay.
- Table-top Photography – This is a category of even so life photography that focuses on objects arranged on a table. Information technology's 1 of the most mutual styles you can notice. It doesn't matter if you're working with fruits, books or toys equally long as they are on a tabletop.
- Concept Photography – With this type of photography, you're using your still life objects to stand for something other than what they are. For instance, in the video above, the lensman uses an alert clock attached to a airship to symbolise that time flies.
- Toy Photography – Recreating scenes depicting real life tin can exist a fun and rewarding experience, particularly since these types of humorous photo typically are so popular on social media.
At that place are examples of nonetheless life all around y'all, then catch an object and keep reading below to find out some peak tips for capturing astonishing still life photos.
16 Tips for Succesful All the same Life Photography
1. Prepare your equipment
All the same Life Gear of Garcia de Marina
- Camera
As Garcia de Marina said to Shotkit near his Nikon D800: "This photographic camera allows me to work with large prints and retain great item in the objects photographed. I practise not need a fast camera considering I only accept photos in the studio with nevertheless elements."
So, for professional person still life photography, what you demand to prioritize is resolution and epitome quality. Full frame cameras are the best choice so, simply they can be plush.
If yous can't afford one just yet, don't worry, you can get-go with whatever camera you lot accept – or fifty-fifty your smartphone.
You may besides find this list of the cheapest full frame cameras useful.
- Lenses
Prime lenses are the best for however life photography because they offer sharper images, less distortion and wider apertures than zoom lenses. Since you're working in a studio setting (most of the time) and using withal objects, you don't need the versatility of a zoom.
Having said that, ideally, you still need a wide range of focal lengths.
A dandy-fifty is a expert overall lens to start with for all the same life photography. It won't cause any distortions because a standard 50mm offers a like perspective to the man eye.
And so, a short telephoto (85mm or 100mm) with macro capabilities will widen the creative possibilities for your shooting. This will allow you to capture pocket-sized subjects or experiment with selective focus.
A broad-angle lens will piece of work well for bigger scenes, or small scenes if you don't accept much room to pace abroad from them. Something effectually 35mm will work well enough without causing much distortion.
- Tripod
Using a tripod is key to withal life photography. Having a steady point of view allows you to etch your paradigm in the best possible way. As well, it will prevent any camera shake in example y'all take to work with irksome shutter speeds.
Since you're working in the studio, you don't need to worry about weight, so get the sturdiest tripod that you can. Keep an center on versatility though, because yous'll need to move your bending of view.
Make sure the tripod caput allows you to pan and tilt hands. For low bending shots, y'all might find it comfy to have a centre cavalcade that tin turn upside down.
Finally, for flat-lay photography, y'all might need a boom arm for your tripod.
Check out our guide to the best DSLR tripods here.
- Lighting
Many still life photographers adopt shooting with natural calorie-free. All the same, using reflectors and diffusers tin can be actually helpful to dispense the light.
2. Plan your scene
Credit: Olya Kobruseva
To create good still life images, yous need to thoughtfully cull the elements and arrange them with intendance. It's all nigh the details.
1 of the best ways to get started is by planning your shot. Think almost the shapes, colours and characteristics that you want before you pick the right object.
Attempt cartoon your scene to determine on a limerick; this will help you organize and execute the idea with improve results.
3. Composition
Credit: Pixabay
Composition refers to the position of the objects inside the frame. Many rules can help you with this: the golden spiral, the golden ratio, the dominion of thirds, the dominion of odds, etc.
All photography needs good limerick, but particularly nevertheless life photography. Without information technology, yous'd just have a bunch of objects that look similar a mess, or your still life photos would simply be uninteresting.
Well-nigh cameras have a filigree with the rule of thirds to help you etch and frame. If you're practising with your smartphone, you tin download a camera app with unlike grids.
Finally, yous can fix up your still life photos using the crop tool and composition overlays in Lightroom. Although, information technology's always better to get it right in-camera if yous can.
4. Camera settings
Credit: Nikolay Osmachko
As whatever professional lensman knows, information technology'southward always best if you have control over the terminal result of the photo. While the auto way might requite you a well-exposed movie, y'all don't get to decide the rest.
For some images, it works improve to take everything in focus; for others, information technology's better to accept a shallow depth of field. To control this, you need to shoot with the right exposure.
The same goes for the shutter speed. If there's a moving element in the picture, such as water running or snowflakes falling, you have to decide if you want to freeze it or keep some move blur.
Learning to use the semi-automatic programs such as aperture priority mode or shutter speed mode will improve your withal life photos. Even better if you master the manual way – meet our beginner's guide to photographic camera settings here.
five. Backdrops
Credit: Venus HD Makeup & Perfume
The groundwork is a large part of still life photography. You're not photographing a product where yous employ a white backdrop to isolate and highlight the discipline – here, the groundwork is part of the scene.
To choose the correct background, you demand to ask yourself what kind of ambience y'all want to gear up for your images.
For instance, if you photograph a cup of java on wrinkled material, it looks like breakfast in bed – it's cosy. If instead, the coffee is on a wooden table, you're already placing the viewer in the kitchen or a coffee store – you're up and active.
The rule doesn't but apply to a flat properties. If you're photographing a bouquet of flowers, are they exterior? Do you lot come across a garden in the back? Or is information technology happening indoors? What do yous encounter behind them?
With the background, you lot're establishing a scene where the story happens. Information technology helps set the mood for your yet life photography.
vi. Choose the right light
Credit: Jurie Maree
It doesn't affair if you're using artificial or natural light sources; finding the best quality of light and lighting setup for your scene is essential.
Lighting is important in still life photography because information technology helps you lot control the scene and create a mood. It's different to apply a hard lite with strong shadows than a soft calorie-free that brightens evenly.
Y'all can also cull between depression-primal and high-fundamental lighting. These lighting setups are very popular in still life photography.
You can employ low-central lighting to have a nighttime and moody ambience and high-key lighting for a clean and ethereal look.
The light's position is likewise important and frequently has to do with the shape and material of the objects. For example, glass benefits greatly from backlighting.
7. Angle of view
Credit: Roman Odintsov
A great way to improve your still life photography is by trying different points of view. Motility around your set and capture the subject field from various angles.
When you exercise this, everything changes in your photo. The objects' shape is different: remember nigh a cake that's a circumvolve from the tiptop but a rectangle from the side.
The perspective is also different considering things that are closer to y'all will smaller than objects that are farther away, and so on. Just past changing your position, yous tin become completely dissimilar pictures.
8. Props
Credit: Jess Harper
Still life is all about objects. When yous photograph but ane object and leave the rest of the frame empty, information technology can exist a powerful epitome, but information technology has to be done properly – and not all objects are suited for this.
Sometimes to make a compelling image, a photographer will add some props that act as limerick elements. Make sure everything complements the scene, though.
Yous tin can use props that get with your master subject area considering they share a theme or a colour – in other words, they make sense together. If not, you can endeavor opposing things to play with other juxtaposition examples and create contrast in your prototype.
See our guide to props for newborn photography.
9. Set up your subject field
Credit: Wendy van Zyl
Before you get started with the photoshoot, information technology's important to fix your subject area. There are many examples of still life tips and tricks that photographers use to enhance food or products to make them camera-ready.
One is calculation drops of h2o to a beer canteen or a glass of iced tea, considering in real life that'south what happens with condensation.
You lot can exist as artistic as you want to enhance your pictures. Just be conscientious non to cantankerous an upstanding line if you're doing professional product photography or food photography.
Preparing the objects in the scene is not merely near enhancing or adding a wow gene; it's also nearly attention to detail. If y'all're working with silverware, you might desire to shine it before setting your scene – the aforementioned goes for jewelry.
10. Colour
Credit: Moose Photos
The utilize of color is a powerful tool in still life photography. It can exist a source of contrast or a common theme betwixt objects.
You can guide the viewer through the scene by making objects pop thanks to complementary colors, or make them focus on shape and texture past using a monochrome colour palette.
You tin grab inspiration from art history and nature for some archetype combinations, or turn to design to see what's currently trending.
11. Texture
Credit: Ylanite Koppens
Texture can add together visual interest to a still life photograph. Recall about a tabletop scene: does information technology wait meliorate on a white-polished table, or can it do good from a rugged wood surface?
Using a textured background can create a contrast between the negative infinite and the subject. Of form, this isn't a rule for all your images, but it works well in some situations.
Another important texture is the i from the bailiwick. Remember well-nigh an orange: would y'all rather see a flat shape or the texture of the pare?
To take artistic control of the texture, you have to consider the object and the lighting. Recall that soft light coming from the front volition flatten a texture. If you want to highlight it, use a harder light that comes from the side.
12. Storytelling
Credit: Gregorio Luiz Gomez
When your image tells a story, the viewer is immediately involved in it and gets invested. Make your yet life photography communicate something to the viewer to have a more successful photo. You tin become every bit creative as you want.
Perchance y'all desire to tell the story of your granddad by making a still life of the family heirlooms, or the story of a civilisation with some traditional objects.
13. Shoot more than one picture
Credit: Jill Couch
As I mentioned before, information technology's ever good to plan your paradigm. Imagine how you want it to look and draw a sketch that will work as a guideline.
However, once you have that shot, don't stop there. Try changing the lighting setup, rearrange the objects, change your camera settings and point of view.
It tin happen that your showtime idea was expert, but once you lot're doing it, you find something smashing that y'all hadn't thought nearly.
14. Represent abstract concepts
Credit: Giallo
To put together a creative still life photograph, you lot don't have to recall almost the object itself. You tin can try using abstract concepts and put together the objects that stand for them. For example, autumn or love.
To go started with conceptual nevertheless lifes, you lot tin can scan some fine art books. Painters have used this technique for centuries and you can get neat inspiration from them and their fine art.
15. Keep your eyes open
Credit: Elle Hughes
Not all still life is constructed by the photographer. Sometimes, information technology's just a matter of keeping your optics open for those lilliputian treasures that you tin can turn into the perfect image.
'Found' still life is as much of an fine art as however life that'due south created. To walk around and recognize something that would make a beautiful photo is a wonderful skill.
16. Postal service-processing
Credit: Toa Heftiba
Post-processing is an important role of still life photography. Ofttimes it'south but a small adjustment like tweaking the exposure or correcting the white balance on an image.
Other times it's more complex, for example, healing specks of dust or imperfections that y'all didn't meet when you were shooting.
A photographer may even remove unwanted objects necessary for production, such as the threads that hold 'floating' objects.
Y'all tin can also exercise some creative mail-processing. For example, make a photo-composite, or add an issue to brand your even so life photo look like a fine art painting.
In sum, adding post-production to your workflow opens up a earth of opportunities to improve and enrich your yet life images.
Still Life Photography FAQs
What are the 2 types of still life photography?
There's created however life, where you purposely arrange a ready of objects for your photo; and found still life, when you stumble upon a dainty scene or setup to photo.
What constitutes a nonetheless life?
A still life is an arrangement of everyday objects without a human discipline. The objects can be natural such as fruits and flowers, or homo-fabricated such as books or jewelry.
What makes even so life photography successful?
A successful photograph starts with the subject; you demand to pick the right ones and suit them properly. And so, utilize photographic techniques to tell the story you want – consider the lighting, the composition, etc.
What is the best lens for still life photography?
A great all-round lens is a 50mm prime number. However, if you can afford to have more than one, add a short telephoto with macro capabilities to your purse.
Why is it called still life?
Still life – both photography and painting – is so named because its subjects don't motion; they're inanimate objects. The term derives from the Dutch discussion 'stilleven' because it was in the Netherlands where it was get-go recognized equally an art genre.
How do withal life photographers brand money?
Commercial clients oft ask for even so life photography to showcase their products and use them for advertising or editorial purposes. Besides, nonetheless life photographers often sell their pictures on stock photography websites.
Concluding Words
I hope this guide got y'all excited about all the same life photography.
Call back that many famous photographers have used this genre to create art photography and that you besides can do great things.
Recollect large, get artistic and start practising!
How To Set A Background For A Still Life Photo,
Source: https://shotkit.com/still-life-photography/
Posted by: hallashery1962.blogspot.com
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